The Unfortunate Events of A Bookworm
by Arukuu-Chan
Summary: This story includes The Unfortunate Events of A Bookworm...Travelling back to Saronia to go to a library isn't as easy as you think. What happens when Arc decides he wants to go to a library, and the others decide to tag along for the hell of it? There will be love, drama and possibly mermaids :D ArcxRefia and IngusxLuneth. A collaboration with The Trailblazer. R&R!
1. Another Boring Day, But Not For Long!

**I'm back! And as seen in the description, I'm doing a collaboration with The Trailblazer! It's going to be a bumpy ride with us! We're writing different chapters each time, and I'm doing the first chapter here! Ok, I do not own these characters and stuff they belong to Square Enix. I wrote this chapter!**

**Enjoy...**

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><p>Arc sighed. He was lying on his bed, staring up at the plain white ceiling. <em>How long has it been since we saved the world again? <em>Arc enquired to himself. He lifted up his right hand, and began to count the days on his fingers. After raising ten fingers, he decided to count his toes instead. It had only felt like yesterday that Arc came home with Luneth, Refia and Ingus, when they had just saved the world. Honestly, it had only been three weeks since they came home. Everyone adored Arc now, since he had proven himself as _not_ a weakling and all the bullies of Arc's past never bullied him anymore.

Nevertheless, Arc was bored. He had mountains of books around his room, but he had read every one of them. In fact, he re-read them all at least twice. Arc was a fast reader, of course. He also helped his mother around the house earlier that morning, so there were no chores for him to do. Arc sighed again.

All was quiet…until Arc heard a door shut downstairs. Arc got off his bed and dusted himself off. He walked to the door, trying not to trip over his books and not to misplace them.

Arc walked downstairs and walked into the kitchen to find Luneth, opening cupboards. He was obviously looking for food. Luneth took no notice of Arc standing at the doorway.

"Come on! There has to be something in here!" Luneth groaned. He had his head stuck right into the cupboard. Luneth's stomach started to growl, which made Arc giggle. Luneth turned around to see who giggled. Luneth wrapped his arms around his stomach, as if it was going to protect it from anymore giggles.

"I can make you something, if you want," Arc walked over to Luneth's side and smiled. "Mom's away to get us more fruit, because somebody ate the rest this morning." Arc chuckled.

"Hey! I didn't eat _all_ of them!" Luneth defended himself.

Arc turned around and looked at him, not convinced. "Really, Luneth?"

"Yes, _really_. Topapa stole some fruit this morning too!" Luneth replied, partly blaming their foster father for thieving the fruit.

Arc still wasn't convinced.

Luneth sighed. "I guess you don't believe then?"

"I'm sorry, Luneth," Arc apologised. "I'm not easily convinced for those types of things. Even Refia and Ingus agreed on that."

Luneth cringed at the name 'Ingus'. It had been three weeks since he seen him and he started to remember all the fights he had with him. At first, he just bickered with him. Then, it escalated into something bigger. Luneth didn't like to fight with him, but then again, Ingus and Luneth were two different people.

"I can make you something to eat if you want?" Arc interrupted Luneth's thoughts. Arc gave Luneth a shy smile.

"Uh," Luneth blushed, still thinking about Ingus. "I guess so…"

"Ok, just tell me what you want and I'll try and make it for you. I can't guarantee that it will be amazing, not like Ingus' cooking anyway." Arc turned around and looked in the cupboards to see if there were any ingredients. He didn't notice Luneth blushing at Ingus' name.

All of a sudden, a knock at the door was heard. Luneth turned around to look at the door. "I'll get it…" Luneth began walking to the door. He got to the door and he hesitated for a moment. _Who could it be? Ingus? No, it couldn't be, since when would he come visit us? By the gods, I hope it's not him…_Regardless of whether Ingus was standing behind the door or not, Luneth opened the door to find a girl with orange-blonde hair, standing at the door. It was Refia

"Well, it took you long enough!" She giggled and rushed in to give Luneth a big hug. It had only been three weeks since Refia last saw Luneth. But then again, three weeks was a long time.

"Refia! What are you doing here?" Luneth exclaimed, as he returned the hug.

"Well, I finished my blacksmith training for the day, so I thought I might visit you and Arc." Refia stopped hugging Luneth and stepped into Luneth's house, inviting herself in through the doorway. Luneth made a face, wondering why Refia let herself all of a sudden. He shrugged his shoulders, shaking the thought away from his head.

Refia looked around. "So, where's Arc?" Refia asked.

"Oh, he's in the kitchen making me food." Luneth smirked.

"Is food all that you can think about?" Refia rolled her eyes. "And why is Arc making it? Can't you make the food yourself?"

Luneth shrugged his shoulders. "He insisted on it!" Luneth defended himself. "I cooked that turkey I found near that lake!"

"Yeah, but that was a farmer's turkey and you burnt it while you were cooking it." Refia grinned. She definitely won this argument. She turned around and walked into the kitchen, where she found Arc setting an apple pie on the counter.

Arc looked up from his apple pie to find Refia standing in front of him, with open arms. "Refia!" Arc exclaimed, as he ran towards to give her a hug. They both hugged each other tightly, just like Refia hugged Luneth as if she hadn't seen him for months. "How are you?" Arc let go of Refia and smiled at her, his arms on hers. Luneth stood at the archway of the kitchen, grinning. Arc never took notice of this.

"I'm fine," Refia smiled back, blushing a little. "I see Luneth's making you cook." She giggled.

Arc took his arms off Refia's. "Actually, I made this earlier. I forgot I left it on the shelf outside." Arc replied sheepishly. He started to blush heavily.

"Good, cause I'm hungry!" Luneth rushed over to the counter where the apple pie was. Refia and Arc started to laugh at their friend's passion for food.

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><p><strong>Ok, that's Chapter 1 done! Stay tuned for Chapter 2, because The Trailblazer will be writing it. R&amp;R peoples!<strong>

_"Write what you think is right." - Anti-Arcus_


	2. Preparations and AHEM 'Love Letters'

**Hello, fellow Final Fantasy/Non-Final Fantasy readers. If you happened to stumble in part of this realm on the internet, feel free to leave a review, have a read and possibly have a cup of coffee. Random much? YES. Anyway...The Trailblazer has written Chapter 2. I've went about and fixed some mistakes in this chapter, but I haven't changed any of the dialouge and stuff in this chapter.**

**So, Enjoy readers...**

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><p>Together, the three friends shared a piece of the apple pie Arc had made earlier. Obviously Luneth, who was hungry, managed to get himself a bigger piece than the other two who, were happily satisfied with a normal sized one. Arc saw this as the perfect opportunity to lay out his desire for visiting the library in Saronia. It would also be nice to visit his friend Alus again, he was really curious on how he was doing now when Alus was a king and all.<p>

"Uhm, I would like to go to Saronia and I wonder if you'd like to join me?" Arc asked shyly while looking first at Refia next to him and then Luneth who sat opposite of him.

Luneth wasn't surprised, he had noticed that Arc recently had seemed restless and he had guessed it was because he had read all his books too many times already.

"Sure, I'm in!" Luneth's replied with a smile before taking another bite of his apple pie.

Refia seemed to mull over what she was thinking about this idea. She didn't have to consider it for long before she turned to Arc with a bright smile on her lips. With a pat on Arc's shoulder she exclaimed with a happy voice. "That means…Road trip!"

"Awesome!" the silver haired boy pumped a fist in the air.

"I simply want to get to the library as fast and easy as possible," Arc stated carefully. "Which means no unnecessary detours and such." He eyed Luneth especially while saying this. Arc knew very well what his brother was capable of as soon as he was let out of the house.

"And what do you mean by that?" teased his brother.

"Oh, you know very well what I mean."

"Arc is right," now it was Refia's turn to tease. "You always seem to find trouble somehow." The girl pointed at Luneth with the fork she used to eat the pie.

"It's trouble that finds me!" Luneth tried to defend himself. "I promise I'm not doing it on purpose."

The others did not look convinced.

"Anyway," Refia interrupted. "We need to plan this. First, we have to decide what we need to bring with us. It's a long way to go so we will need some food, equipment and of course, gil." Being the responsible girl that she sometimes was, she felt it was her duty to make out all the plans for the trip, since boys usually proved useless at that. She was happy that at least Arc could be organized; maybe she could get some help from him? "Will Ingus be joining?"

Luneth was starting to grow tired of how many times he had to try and hide a blush while hearing that knight's name.

"He should," Refia continued without waiting for the others answers. "It'll be a reunion road trip after all." She nodded to herself in agreement. "Okay, so this is how we will do it," she turned her gaze towards the brown haired boy next to her. "You will help me packing and Luneth," he eyes shifted focus to the other boy. "You will try to get a hold of Ingus, send him a letter or something."

"Why me?" cried Luneth with a whining voice. "I can pack with Arc and you send him a stupid letter." Being childish and stubborn was one way to hide a crush. But Refia had already decided how things should be and she didn't change her mind that easily.

"No, if I leave you two to pack it'll be a disaster." Refia's voice was stern and determined.

As Arc was a shy boy, even though he knew his friends very well he didn't always participate in on the discussions but he was happy to the fact that they would be spending some time together again. He would even get a chance to get some new books.

"I agree with Refia," maybe it was his admiration for the girl talking or he just trusted her organization skills more than Luneth's, at any rate he felt agreeing with Refia would be for the best.

Luneth couldn't believe his ears; his own brother went against him. "You're ganging up on me!" He threw his arms up in despair. "Alright, fine! I'll write the stupid letter!" With that said he finished the last bite of his pie and stomped away with heavier steps than necessary leaving his two friends staring after him with shock.

"What's gotten into him?" Arc asked with surprise.

"Hmm…" Refia had her idea on what could be going on, but she wasn't sure the rest of the world was ready for it quite yet. "I have no idea." She lied. "Anyway, let's start the packing." With a smile she stood up and grabbed Arc's arm dragging him with her.

"S-sure," not having much of a choice he followed his female friend with a small blush on his cheeks.

In the mean time, Luneth was seated by the desk in his room, pen and paper ready.

"**Dear Ingus,"** he began scribbling with the pen. Seeing the letters on the paper he realized how stupid it must sound. "What am I? An old lady?" Quickly he crumpled the paper and tossed it behind him.

"**Hello Ingus! I was wondering-"** No scratch that. **"Hey Ingus, we were wondering if you'd have the time to join us for a little journey to Saronia?" **Luneth came to understand that he hated writing letters. **"It seems Arc wants to go there for some new books and Refia thought it'd be fun if we all could meet up again."** Did it sound lame? **"I would appreciate if you could come so I would have someone to train some fighting with."** Okay, now it did sound lame for sure. **"Reply as soon as you can! Love, Luneth."** What the! He erased the last part. Was he blushing?**"Regards, Luneth, Refia and Arc."** Now that's better. _"I hope this will do,"_ he thought as he read the letter to himself.

"Luneth! Are you done with the letter already?" Refia's voice called him from downstairs.

"I am…!" his reply was rather thoughtful, as he was still unsure if the letter was good or not. _"Ah, it'll have to do."_ He grabbed the letter and rushed downstairs to show it to the others.

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><p><strong>So, I guess that's the end of the chapter...But don't be sad. I'll have the next chapter written soon. And hopefully, it will be longer. The next few chapters might be longer, so stay tuned for more chapters of this Collaboration! (Also, I've been reduced to writing Author's Notes. It's pretty much my time to shine in The Trailblazer's chapters XD)<strong>

_"Write what you think is right." - Anti-Arcus_


	3. A Deal

**I'm back! With Chapter 3! Ok, I wrote this chapter. I do not own Final Fantasy III nor its characters.**

**Enjoy...**

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><p>Refia and Arc were busy packing, while Luneth was slowly walking down the stairs. Arc was going over the list of items Refia, Luneth and himself were going to need for the journey. Refia watched Arc as he done this. <em>How can he be so organised? <em>Refia was puzzled by this.

Arc turned around to look at Refia and found Refia was already looking at him. Refia blushed. Arc smiled and blushed too. "I think we got everything for the journey…" Arc broke the awkward silence between them.

Refia smiled. "That's great, now where's Luneth with that letter?"

"I'm here!" Luneth walked into the living room where Arc and Refia were, waving his letter in the air. "Sorry if it's a bit messy, I didn't know what to say, and then some things sounded wrong-"

Refia snatched the letter from Luneth's hand and began to read it. Luneth bit his lip. He really didn't want to get scolded by Refia for his untidy handwriting.

Refia looked back at him with a scowl on her face. "Seriously Luneth, is this all you can do?"

"Can I see?" Arc asked politely. Refia smiled and handed Arc the letter. Arc scanned over the letter. Arc was a particularly fast reader and could read a letter in at least ten seconds. But since Luneth scribbled on his letter, Arc had to re-read the letter to see if he read it right. "I'm guessing you made some mistakes in this?" Arc looked up from the letter at Luneth.

"I'm sorry?" Luneth said sheepishly. He shrugged. "Do you want me to re-write it?"

"That would great," Refia smiled. Arc handed Refia the letter, who handed it Luneth. "Think about what you're writing next time." Refia teased Luneth. Luneth blushed and began to walk off to re-write his letter to Ingus.

Arc had a puzzled look on his face. "What was that all about?"

"Oh, nothing, don't worry about it." Refia replied. She took his hand. "Because, we just need to make sure we have everything." Even though every thing was in order for the journey, Refia just wanted to spend time alone with Arc.

Refia had a crush on Arc, if you didn't notice. Refia had developed a somewhat infatuation for the freckled boy. At first, Refia thought it was just a crush, and thought that she would soon get over it. But her crush ended up getting bigger every time she saw Arc, or had anything to do with Arc. But luckily, Arc was completely oblivious to this, so Refia didn't have anything to worry about. Well, for now.

"Well, I think we have everything, so I guess we could talk for awhile until Luneth finishes writing the letter?" Arc suggested.

Refia blushed. _Oh no. He wants to talk to me. What do I say? Oh, by the gods, Refia, don't mess this up!_ "Um, ok." Refia managed to smile back. She had held onto Arc's hand for quite a bit, so she decided to walk with Arc into the living room.

They both sat down on the sofa. Arc looked down at his feet, obviously not knowing what to say to Refia. Refia just stared into space. The silence didn't last long until Arc spoke up. "So, how's your blacksmith training been going? I hear you're doing ok, so far."

Refia nodded. "Yeah, things are going pretty well. At least I haven't ran away yet." She giggled. Arc chuckled along with her. "I have to tell my dad I'll be away for awhile, again. At least I finished a major part in my blacksmith training."

"I guess you're right. I'll have to leave a note for Mom and Topapa." Arc had realised that he couldn't go away without his mother knowing where he was going. _I'll do it later. _Arc thought. _Right now, I want to talk to Reifa._

"Well, I think a journey to Saronia's library is a golden opportunity for all of us." Refia interrupted Arc's thoughts. "I mean, you get to see Alus and go to the library, and the rest of us can stretch our legs and get a taste of exploring again."

"That's right." Arc agreed. "I think it would be great for all of us."

Refia nodded her head and smiled. _Could this be the right time to tell him? _Refia thought gingerly. _No, I can't just tell him. What if he doesn't even like me back? I don't want to ruin our friendship, but I don't want to stay as his friend forever. _All these thoughts swirled through Refia's head.

"Refia, are you ok?" Arc laid a hand on Refia's shoulder, trying to look at Refia's face, which was looking down at the ground. Anxiety was written all over her face. Refia looked up at a concerned Arc. "Oh, no I'm fine." Refia lied. She couldn't just say that she loved Arc. Or could she?

"Hey you guys! I finished the letter!" Luneth came rushing into the living room, waving the letter in the air, looking proud of himself. "Read it, read it, read it! I touched it up a bit too, so it sounds more polite!" Luneth seemed pretty excited about the letter. He handed it to Refia and Arc, who were now both sitting up straight.

Refia took the letter from Luneth and began reading it with Arc.

The letter read: **Ingus! I've written this letter to ask you if you wanted to come on a little trip with Arc, Refia and me! It seems Arc wants to go to the library in Saronia and Refia thought it would be a great idea that we could meet up again. I would appreciate it if you came with us, because I would have someone to train with. If you can meet us in Caanan, we'll travel from there.**

**Many regards, Luneth, Arc and Refia. xx**

Refia giggled. She obviously seemed to like it. "Nice job, Luneth. I think I should get you to write my letters from now on."

"Oh, hell no!" Luneth shouted, with a look of horror on his face. "You don't know the half of this!"

Arc and Refia looked at each other and giggled. "Well, all we have to do is send the letter off to Ingus." Arc grinned. He loved it when a plan came together.

"Refia, how about you find Mognet and send the letter off?" Luneth grinned. "Since _I _wrote the letter.

"Well, I suppose it's the nice thing to do for you, since you did write the letter and all." Refia replied. "I'll be back soon." Refia walked towards the door and opened it and walked away from the house to find Mognet.

Luneth turned to Arc. "So, you haven't told her yet?"

Arc looked at Luneth with a puzzled look. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, have you told her you love her yet."

"O-Oh…" Arc blushed heavily. "That thing…" Arc was shy, and when he ever had a crush on a girl, he would obviously keep it to himself. Most girls thought that Arc weren't for them – which he wasn't – so it was hard for Arc to ever find a girl he really liked. He generally didn't talk about girls that often, probably because he was embarrassed. But Arc had a plus side – he was 'cute'. Most girls liked him for this. Ever since he helped saved the world, girls practically adored him. Although he didn't think he would find the right girl.

And then he met Refia. Yes, it seems that Refia might never fall for Arc, but Arc loved her none the less. From Arc's point of view, Refia was different from any other girl he had a crush on. Her hair was different, her eyes were different, and her personality stood out. She was like a motherly figure, always scolding the boys – mostly Luneth. But Refia had a gentle side. She was sweet and full of life. And of course, Reifa was given the title 'the light of affection' by Doga and Unei. Who didn't love Refia? That moment on Cid's airship when he first saw Refia, Arc was instantly captivated by her.

"I-I don't know Luneth…I'm too nervous to tell her…" Arc said shyly.

"Oh, come on, Arc! She's Refia! She won't mind! I bet if you told her, she would be glad you told her." Luneth encouraged Arc. Luneth was always there to support his younger foster-brother.

"I-I'll tell her Luneth…But not now. It's too early."

Luneth frowned. He was hoping that Arc and Refia would miraculously become a couple during the space of the day. After all, 'the light of kindness' and 'the light of affection' go pretty well together. Right? "Ok, ok, but you have to tell her at some point during the trip. Deal?" Luneth placed his hand out for Arc to shake it.

Arc looked at Luneth's hand. "Deal." He shook Luneth's hand firmly, then let go because Refia had walked back into the house.

She was panting. "I had to run after Mognet…and I nearly…did a lap…of the vill…age…" Refia tried to calm herself, by breathing in and out. "So, are we set to go?"

"I think we are, I just need to write that note for Mom and Topapa." Arc walked out of the room for pen and paper.

"I need to write a letter to my dad too. I have to tell him that I'll be gone for awhile." Refia said to Luneth, as she walked out of the room.

Luneth shrugged his shoulders. He closed his eyes and thought about Arc and Refia as a couple. _Now they would be good together, just like me and Ingus.. _Luneth opened his eyes again and shook that thought from his head. _What am I thinking? Well, you can imagine, right?_

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><p><strong>Who likes the ending? ME! Ok, The Trailblazer shall be writing the next chapter. SO R&amp;R PEOPLES!<strong>

_"Write what you think is right." - Anti-Arcus_


	4. Off To Canaan!

**Hey! The Trailblazer and I are back with another review of our collaboration! The Trailblazer has written this chapter, and I actually edited it in some points. The description of Desch's clothing, is by me. Because Trailblazer was too lazy to write that part xD I'm just kidding! Ok, me nor The Trailblazer own Final Fantasy III or its characters (we wish ;.;) but we own the plot of this story.**

**Enjoy...**

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><p><em>Finally we are on our way.<em> Arc thought as he finished the note for his adoptive parents. He placed it in plain sight on the kitchen table. Arc wanted to be sure that his parents wouldn't miss it.

He met the other two in the hallway and they left the house together, each of them carrying a well packed bag over their shoulders.

"We should find a Moogle first," Refia stated, with her delicate eyes scanning the area to see if there was one close by. She didn't feel like running around the whole village once again. Unfortunately, she didn't spot one.

"I'm sure we'll meet one on our way out of Ur," Luneth continued when he saw Refia's disappointed expression.

"I suppose you're right." Refia made a mental note that someday, she would get her own personal Moogle.

It seemed luck was on the warriors' side, because just as they were about to head out of Ur, Arc spotted one of the Moogles. They group hurried up to it so see if they had gotten any reply from Ingus. They had, well if his short excuse of a letter could count as a reply. **"I will meet you in Caanan this afternoon. Sincerely, Ingus."**

Luneth stared at it for awhile, before turning his gaze to Refia. "And you complained on my letter, jeez..."

Refia just laughed and pocket the letter in her vest. "He is a royal soldier after all; they are supposed to be short and concise."

"No excuse though. I busted my-"

"Enough!" Refia gave him a sort of friends slap on the head. "Let's go already, or Ingus will have to wait all night for us to get there."

Arc smiled and nodded in agreement. It was nice to finally spend some time with all his friends again. Especially Refia. But how will he dare to tell her his feelings like he promised his brother he would. Maybe he should just kiss her out of the blue. If she rejected him, he would at least know if she tasted like strawberry. He blushed at the thought. _Or maybe I'll just confess by really telling her my feelings. _Arc felt like he was a little polite to just steal a girl's kiss like that, could he really pull that off? But before worrying about confessing, he had to wait for the right moment. Hopefully this trip would give him one.

x-¤-x

"Luneth, are you sure we are going in the right direction?" Arc asked his foster brother, looking at him nervously.

"Of course!" Confidence filled the silver-haired boy's voice. "It's not like I haven't used a map before."

"I know…" Arc continued. "But it was awhile ago."

"Arc! I don't forget things that easily."

"Are you sure?" Refia peeked up behind Luneth's shoulder and examined the map with curious eyes. "Because you're holding it wrong." She pinched him in the cheek teasingly.

"I am not holding the map wrong."

"Oh, but you are!" Refia made fun of him some more.

"What?" Arc came closer to them to take a look at the map. "No, it's not-" he stopped himself as he noticed Refia staring at him with a meaningful look, before she smirked and gave him a quick wink with her eye. Arc understood immediately. "You see, Luneth," Arc went along with Refia's tease. In fact, there was nothing wrong with the map or the way Luneth held it. "It is supposed to be like this," The brown haired boy grabbed the map and turned the paper ninety degrees.

With two against one, Luneth started to doubt himself a little, and looked at the other two nervously. Had he really forgotten how to use a map? After all those travels they had been through.

"Really?" He asked them with a dumbfounded look.

Their only reply was a serious look and confirming nod.

"Okay then," His violet eyes examined the now wrong-turned map before looking around. "In that case we're going this way." He started walking and the other two followed him without a word. Though they didn't speak, Luneth could quite clearly hear how his two friends were snickering and giggling behind his back. Stopping in his tracks, he turned to look at them with a half angry, half dejected look on his face. "You're messing with me, aren't you?" he sighed.

They couldn't hold it anymore. Arc and Refia burst out laughing.

"You should've seen your face!" Refia held one hand on her stomach and the other one was pointing at Luneth, who just sighed once again.

"Very funny! Can we get going already?" _"Ingus is probably waiting…"_Luneth usually enjoyed all kinds of jokes; the problem was just when he was the victim of them, so he wanted to forget this as soon as possible.

"Yes, yes. Of course." Refia tried to straighten up but the giggling just wouldn't stop.

Arc, who by now had calmed down completely, carefully eyed Refia with a smile on his lips. She was really beautiful when she laughed and her giggles sounded so cute. No book could compare to that. In fact, not even an entire library could compare to her.

x-¤-x

It was already nightfall when they finally arrived at Canaan; the sun was slowly sinking while painting the sky in orange and pink. All three of them felt relieved that they reached their first destination with not much trouble. Perhaps Luneth was the only one that wouldn't agree, as he was still a little grumpy over the fact that they had tricked him into thinking he held the map wrong. Although, the sight of a certain knight who calmly stared into the distant made him forget that in a second.

Leaving his other two friends behind Luneth dashed off. Not like some kind of love sick girl, no, he dashed like a guy who was ready to punch the living hell out of the other.

Refia and Arc shared a look of confusion when Luneth flew through the air, fist ready, aiming for the beautiful face of the knight. Ingus was of course more than ready for this, knowing Luneth he probably hadn't had a real fight the last few weeks and his body would be itching for a battle. Swiftly, the knight dodged while trying to land a kick on his attacker's ribs. Being almost as quick as the knight Luneth managed to parry the kick with his arm, unfortunately he failed to predict the punch coming towards his face.

Luneth stumbled a few steps back, adjusting his jaw as a smirk formed upon his lips. "You haven't been slacking off, have you?"

"Of course not." Ingus looked at his newly arrived friends. "You are late."

Arc and Refia walked up by the other two boys with calm smiles on their faces, a battle was to be expected from these guys after all.

"Well," Refia had a mischievous smile as she got ready to tease her friend Luneth some more. "Luneth here got lost." She and Arc began giggling again.

"I did not!" The flustered Luneth exclaimed. "They tricked me!" He pointed towards the two swindlers, while turning to Ingus for support.

"I should have known." Unfortunately Ingus wasn't so supportive, as he only shook his head.

"They're lying!" the silver-haired boy tried to convince him.

"Now why would we lie?" Refia asked honestly, but even so it was still a lie in Luneth's ears.

It seemed everyone in this group enjoyed a little teasing of Luneth, except Luneth himself of course. He felt betrayed; it was like his beloved friends had taken over his job of making fun of people. But on the other hand he was as happy as everyone else to finally set for a new adventure, and the thought of that made him forgive them. After all, it was only fair that they teased him back once in awhile.

"Because you're sneaky like that," Mature as he was, Luneth stuck his tongue out.

"Now you're just being childish, Luneth." Ingus placed one of his gloved hands upon Luneth's silvery head.

Realizing that Ingus, the knight that always made him feel awkward and at ease at the same time, had touched him, Luneth quickly turned his head away to hide an upcoming blush.

"Should we get going then?" Luneth asked quickly to get away from the uncomfortable situation.

"It's starting to get dark though," Arc began. "Maybe we should spend the night here in Canaan?"

"I'm sure we can stay at Desch's!" Luneth said happily. It was some time ago they all met Desch, their friend from the ancient times. He was an easy going guy that went along well with everyone in their group.

"Yeah!" Refia agreed. "Let's go see how he's doing."

Maybe a little too well if you asked Arc. He could be a little paranoid, as he suspected that there were some feelings going on between Desch and Refia. Luneth had explained almost a hundred times that it was nothing to worry about, that Arc was a much better man for Refia than Desch ever could be. Desch also had a girlfriend already, so Arc really shouldn't worry.

They all walked with smiles on their faces, happy to be together again and to also see another friend. But not Arc, he was a little worried as he never knew how to act around Desch's flirting personality; Luneth noticed this and walked closer to Arc.

"You've nothing to worry about," he whispered, so only Arc could hear him.

"I know, but still…" Arc sighed. "I don't know what to do. I have never been in love before."

Luneth found his foster brother kind of cute with his shyness together with love problems, he just wanted to hug him and tell him that everything was going to be alright. Instead, Luneth patted him reassuringly on the shoulder so their comrades wouldn't notice and ask what they were talking about.

"Just follow your heart." Not that Luneth knew much about love either, but that was the most logic thing he could come up with.

Arc tried his best to look confident when he nodded in reply. They had just reached the house where Desch lived together with his girlfriend, and there was no more time for the brothers to continue their conversation.

Ingus knocked firmly on the door and it didn't take that long for it to open, revealing a familiar figure. Desch had his green-blue hair in a low ponytail, and had his little crystal earrings in his ears. He was dressed in his normal attire, which consisted of a long purple coat, with his blue-grey collar. His coat still reached down to below his knees. He wore his general tight-fitted, purple trousers, with his knee high black boots.

He looked at them with his dark purple eyes, and greeted them with a bright but surprised smile. "Out saving the world again?"

"Nah, we're just taking a little trip to Saronia," Luneth explained.

"And the night is closing in so we thought we would spend it here in Canaan." Refia continued.

"Oh! That was a great thought," Desch stepped aside to let his four friends in. "Come in, come in."

The warriors of light did as they were told, and walked into Desch's house.

"You guys want supper?" Desch asked as they all took a seat in his living room. "Salina is out buying groceries, and I'm sure there's enough for all of us." After not seeing his fellow friends in a long while, Desch really wanted to do something for them.

"Yes!" Luneth pumped his fist in the air.

Refia and Ingus, who both sat next to Luneth, nudged him in the side with their elbows.

"Try to be a little polite," Refia hissed and Ingus agreed with a firm nod.

Arc sat next to Refia, nervous which caused him to play with his fingers. He liked Desch though, but not the thought of Desch and Refia together, so he wouldn't mind some food but he kind of wanted to get out of there as soon as possible. Or more correctly, get Refia out of here as soon as possible.

"Why don't you spend the night here instead of those dirty inns?" Desch suddenly asked.

"_Oh, this couldn't be happening?"_ Arc's inner self exclaimed, while he for real panicked, but he didn't show it. He had a feeling Luneth knew though.

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><p><strong>Now, what did we think of that chapter? I'll be writing the next chapter, so stay tuned! Please R&amp;R!<strong>

_"Write what you think is right." - Anti-Arcus_


	5. Misfits In Mr Desch's Household!

**Hey, guys! IT'S BEEN TOO LONG! ~ Since the story was updated! So so sorry about that! A little thing called life really takes over your calender! Well, it's here now! ...and it's kinda short ^.^' sowei! - That was my little, chibi voice thing...there..ahem. So, moving on from that, I wrote this chapter. The Trailblazer shall be writing the next one! (And hopefully it won't take as long to write as I did with this one!) So, we do not own Final Fantasy III (sad face...) or its characters (depressed face...) But we own the plot! (OH YEAH!) ...sorry, I'm hyper. Sooooo:**

**Enjoy...**

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><p>Arc sat on the sofa with his fellow comrades, twiddling his thumbs. It was obvious that Arc was worried about something, but no one seemed to notice. Apart from Luneth of course.<p>

Luneth knew all too well that Arc was worried about Desch. Luneth could always tell when Arc was worried about something. He could always see it written on his face, or when Arc was playing with thumbs or fingers, like he was doing right now.

Arc did still listen and look up at Desch, faking his smile and trying to make himself seem like he was ok. But really, Arc just wanted to get out Canaan and head on to the library, or should we say, wanted to get Refia out of Canaan and head on to the library. Arc just couldn't help but feel a little jealous of Desch, and you couldn't really blame him. Desch was pretty good-looking, and he did have a way with the ladies.

"So, what are you guys doing here?" Desch was sitting down on a chair opposite his old friends.

"Well, we've actually met up with Ingus here in Canaan, so then the four of us could head to the library in Saronia together." Luneth explained.

Desch raised his eyebrows, interested in the subject at hand. "Did you come prepared?"

Refia scoffed. "You don't even have to ask that question!"

Desch chuckled. "Well you're right about one thing."

"Hey!" Refia got up and punched Desch in the arm.

"Hey! What was that for?"

"You know rightly, Desch!" Refia said, trying to act serious, but had a smirk written across her face.

Desch shrugged his shoulders. "I can't help it."

Refia scoffed again. "Yeah right!"

"Now, now, we do not want any arguments going on." Ingus scolded the pair.

Everyone looked at each other, with Ingus staring at them in confusion. Suddenly, they all burst out laughing, apart from Ingus, who stared at them blankly.

"Oh, Ingus," Desch said, still laughing. "You haven't changed a bit!"

"Well, I do not plan on changing anytime…" Ingus chuckled.

The house was filled with roaring laughter, and this was just for no reason. Soon enough this laugher stopped, as Salina walked through the door.

"So, this is what happens when I leave the house to you for twenty minutes?" Salina had her hands on her hips, with bags full of groceries at her feet.

"C'mon, Salina." Desch got out of his seat and lifted the bags full of groceries. "At least I didn't burn the house down."

"Well, I guess you're right." Salina smiled.

Desch chuckled. He kissed Salina on the cheek, resulting in having a groan from the others echo the house.

"Seriously, Desch. Get a room!" Luneth grimaced, obviously disgusted by Desch and Salina.

"Oh, lighten up, Luneth!" Desch chuckled. "You might be like this someday!"

Luneth grimaced again. "Maybe not like you two…"

Eventually, the time came around where everyone had supper, and soon enough, Luneth was asking for more, with Ingus scolding him a little. And Arc wasn't speaking at all; only listening to conversations. Refia kept glancing at him and every now and again and got worried. Every time she glanced over at him, Arc had his head down, keeping himself busy with his food.

As for Ingus, he kept watching – and kept trying to scold – Luneth, who kept stuffing his face full of food. He had to admit, it was a little cute, but he knew it was rude, and Ingus was used to being raised in a polite manner. It was always up to Ingus to keep everyone in line – especially Luneth.

Soon after dinner, it got dark, and Desch remembered that he had offered his friends some rooms to stay in his house overnight. So, he organised a room for Ingus and Luneth, and a room for Arc and Refia.

Before Arc walked through the door of his bedroom, Luneth pulled him out away from the door and took him someplace quiet.

"And remember, you'll be fine, Arc!" Luneth said patting him on the back.

"But-"

"No 'buts', Arc," Luneth interrupted Arc. "You're gonna be fine. Desch _definitely _likes Salina. So, Refia's all yours! Well, not yet…I think."

Arc sighed. "Goodnight, Luneth." He began walking towards his bedroom door.

"Uh, goodnight, I guess…" Luneth replied back, feeling awkward.

"Don't fight with Ingus!" Arc said, as he shut the door.

Luneth shook his head and sighed. He walked in through his bedroom door, and closed it behind him.

"Were you talking to Arc?"

Luneth turned around and looked at Ingus. "Well, sort of." He rubbed his neck.

Ingus looked at Luneth with a quizzical look. Then, he just shook it off. "Well, your conversation with him is over for now, I presume?"

"Pretty much," Luneth replied. "So, what side of the bed do you want?"

"The left side," Ingus stretched his arms. "I have a knack for the left side of a double bed."

"You never told me that."

"I would have thought you would have caught on during our journey." Ingus said, getting into his side of the bed.

"I don't catch on that fast." Luneth replied, getting into his side of the bed. "Did you ever catch on to that?"

Ingus chuckled. "I think I did."

Luneth rolled his eyes. "Well, lights out. We have to be wide awake for the morning."

"Ok, then," Ingus stretched his arms again. He turned on his side, facing away from "Goodnight, Luneth." Ingus muttered.

"Night, Ingus." Luneth muttered back, as he blew out the candle on his bedside table. He lay back down into bed and kept his eyes opened. Luneth stared at the ceiling. _Looks like it's gonna be awhile before I get any sleep…_

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><p>Arc lay on his side of his bed, staring at the wall, even though it was dark and he couldn't see anything. A couple of hours had passed, and Arc had gotten barely any sleep. Maybe lying beside Refia had bugged him a little? Nah, if anything, it made him quite comfortable. Maybe it was the thing that Arc had been keeping from Refia that was bugging him…but he couldn't wake her up in the middle of the night to tell her. She would probably forget it and fall back asleep. <em>Gods, it's making me nervous just lying here thinking about it…<em> Arc thought to himself.

Arc felt Refia shift on the bed. He blushed heavily. It was like Refia was shifting…closer to Arc. It felt that way for Arc for a couple of hours. But he didn't complain. Arc kind of liked it.

Arc looked behind him and saw that Refia was facing Arc's back. And she was getting closer. And a little closer. Sub-consciously, Arc turned around and was now face to face with Refia. Soon enough, his eyes closed slowly, and he drifted off into sleep. Seemed like Arc was going to get a goodnight's sleep after all.

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><p><strong>R&amp;R, peace off and all that jazz! ~<br>**

_"Write what you think is right." - Anti-Arcus _


	6. Running Into Problems

**Now this...this was long overdue xD and The Trailblazer and I apologize xD We have both been busy because school refuses to let us have a bit of fun. Damn you school. Well, at least it's here now. And I think you're going to enjoy it :D So, we do not own Final Fantasy III or its characters but we own the plot :D **

**Enjoy...**

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><p>The four teenagers had been sleeping rather well, despite different circumstances and when they woke that morning a bright, sunny light greeted them.<p>

When Arc slowly opened his eyes, he was met by a sight that made his face go red in an instant, despite that fact that he was barely awake. Right in front of him was Refia's sleeping face, their noses almost touching for laying so close to each other. It seemed that their sleeping selves unconsciously had snuggled up closer to one another. Realizing this, Arc quickly but carefully moved further to the side of the bed, trying to calm down his fluster. He took deep breaths while concentrating his vision on a suspicious spot in the ceiling.

_Someone smashed a fly there?_ He thought curiously to himself, knowing that it must have been kind of tricky to kill it while it was in the ceiling rather than a wall.

Suddenly Refia started shifting.

_Was my thought that loud?!_ Arc panicked. He hadn't exactly calmed down yet.

Refia slowly woke up from her slumber, her hands reaching for her eyes to wake them up with a gentle rub. She stretched a little too, before getting up to a half sitting position, taking support from her elbow.

"Oh, good morning, Arc!" She spoke with what Arc considered the most beautiful smile ever.

"G-good morning." He managed to stutter back before quickly get out of bed and turn his, once again, pink face away from her.

Luckily for Arc, Refia didn't seem to pay much attention to his awkward behaviour. Instead, she sat up on the bed, dangling her legs over the edge. "We should get ready and wake the others." Her voice as cheerful as ever. Must have been because of the nice sleep she got.

Arc nodded in agreement, but soon realized that maybe she couldn't see that. "Yeah."

At the same time, across the hall, the sunlight had woken Ingus up too. Unfortunately, his sight wasn't as pleasant as Arc's. No, what Ingus eyes had to witness was a drooling Luneth, taking up most of the bed. Heck, one leg was even spread over Ingus' stomach! Luneth's pillow was on its way to slide down on the floor and the blanket had been kicked aside, and was only used by Ingus at this point. And if Ingus were to guess, it had probably been like that for most of the night.

After all, he was usually, and according to him, unfortunately the one who always had to share with Luneth, and the silver hair's unusual sleeping habits were something he quickly had to get used to.

Used to it or not, he didn't exactly enjoy it, and that's why Luneth was doomed to get used to Ingus cruel way of waking him up. Ingus had a smirk on his face and didn't even think twice about it before kicking Luneth out of the bed.

There was a loud crash followed by a groaning sound. Ingus couldn't hold back a chuckle when seeing Luneth making his way to a sitting position. Leaning his head onto the bed, Luneth had one eye closed, still trying to sleep with it as the other one shot a dagger or two towards Ingus.

"Was that really necessary?" Luneth's tired voice spoke.

"Oh, I believe it was." Ingus replied, while making a bad attempt to cover his smirk with his hand.

"Such a bully." It was only heard as a mumble because Luneth was burying his face into the mattress, doing his best to remember the feeling of comfort.

Ingus never missed anything though. "I heard that." Sometimes Ingus' good hearing and vision made Luneth doubt his humanity. "Now get dressed so we can eat breakfast."

Even though it kind of sounded like an order, Luneth did not argue. His stomach was growling and a good breakfast would be the only cure.

After travelling together for so long it seemed one of the side effects was that they all woke up approximately the same time. Which is why Arc and Refia didn't have to wake the two boys up. Just when they opened their door to walk across to Luneth and Ingus' room, they saw the handle moving and a second later, a fully dressed Ingus revealed himself in the door frame. Luneth was in the background, rubbing the last sleep out of his eyes.

"Good morning!" They all greeted each other before heading towards the kitchen to indulge some of Desch and Salina's breakfast.

Breakfast was rather calm, unless you count Luneth's anger over Ingus for taking the last toast, or Ingus complaining over Luneth's table manners, not that the others disagreed.

As I said, rather calm, maybe Luneth was too tired to pick a fight with Ingus, or maybe they all simply were a little sad they would have to leave Desch when finally having the chance to meet him after so long. But despite Desch and Salina's pleasant company, the warriors had a destination to reach, the library of the Saronian Castle. Which is why the comrades had rather sad expressions on their faces as they waved good-bye and thanked the couple for their hospitality.

"See ya all soon!" Luneth waved and began walking with the others.

"Take care!" shouted Refia.

"We will!" Came the couple's reply, before grabbing each other's hand and returning into their house.

"I say, we go into the woods and find ourselves some chocobos." Luneth spoke turned to his companions.

They all nodded in agreement, travelling by foot took up a lot of time, plus it was more comfortable on the back of a chocobo.

Upon entering the forest, it didn't take them long to find a horde of chocobos. The more difficult task came in catching and taming these wild, yellow birds.

Although, Refia didn't have the same problem as the boys, after just a minute or two Refia had a proud smile curved upon her lips, already on top of a chocobo. Now she just observed the others in amusement.

"Cheater!" Luneth yelled at her in despair as he was running after one of the other chocobos.

Arc agreed a little but with some humour in his voice. "Yes, it's unfair that you can practically talk them into letting you ride them."

"Well," Refia spoke haughtily while taking a closer look at her nails to appear unaffected by their rather flattering comments about her chocobo skills. "I'm just cool like that."

The boys just groaned and returned to their chocobo chase. Arc and Ingus managed to catch one of the yellow birds only a few minutes later but…Luneth had some problems.

Chocobos aren't stupid. Luneth had just learned that the hard way. When the feathery creatures had understood what was going on, they decided that they didn't feel like getting caught today. Therefore, they quickly fled the scene after Ingus and Arc had caught theirs. Luneth let out a loud sigh as he threw his arms up in the air in obvious frustration.

Although, there was one bird left. It was hiding behind a bush a few meters up ahead, if Luneth failed with this one he would have to walk, hearing his friends laughs follow him all the way to Saronia. Luneth got ready to sneak up on it when Arc stopped him.

"Lune, wait." Arc turned to Refia with almost pleading eyes. "Can you convince that chocobo to let him ride him?"

"Of course!" Refia spoke proudly. "But I won't. It's much more fun this way." She looked at Luneth, ready to laugh like she had done the whole time while watching him chasing one bird after another.

"Please, Refia?" Now Arc was pleading. He knew Luneth would never make it but Arc was getting tired of just standing around. He wanted to get to Saronia. He wanted to get to the library. But most of all he wanted to get an opportunity to confess his feelings for Refia. And he refused to do that in this chocobo village with his friends and birds watching. "Or we will never continue our journey." He continued, still looking with those brown puppy eyes directly at Refia.

Refia just couldn't say no to those eyes. Actually, she couldn't say no to Arc at all. She gave her chocobo a pat on the head before getting off of it. "I'll help. Luneth, move away a little."

"I don't need any help." Luneth lied.

Refia just pushed him away and walked ahead to the bird. "Sure you do." She slowly approached the chocobo with one on her hands reaching out to it. She leaned in and whispered a few words to it before petting it on its head. "It's all good now." There was a proud smile on her lips as she walked back with the bird to Luneth.

He didn't know what to say, no one knew, her skills with these birds were just too amazing. All he did was mumble a quiet 'thank you' as he got up on the bird.

Finally, they were on their way again. And despite Luneth's lack of luck with the chocobos his cheerful personality was quick to return. And when they stopped to have lunch by a lake, it was like the bird incident had never happened.

They all tied their birds to a nearby tree, and Refia volunteered to get them some water while leaving the lunch to the boys. She grabbed two buckets they had and started to make her way towards the lake. She knew that the water in a lake was not so clean but she thought she had noticed a small stream leading to the lake when they arrived.

"Refia, wait up!" Luneth came running towards her. He had decided that she needed some help, letting a girl carry heavy buckets wasn't exactly gentlemanly, as Ingus probably would have put it. And he was sure Ingus and Arc could handle setting up a fire and warming the food.

Although, if Luneth were a gentleman or not was debatable, the real reason he decided to help Refia was so he could be alone with her. He had some important questions he needed to ask her in private.

"Ref?" Luneth started while following her close behind as she was keeping her eyes ahead looking for the stream.

"Yes?" She replied, not paying too much attention to him.

Luneth didn't know how to put this except but to be frank. "What do you think about Arc?"

Refia stopped, but didn't turn around; instead Luneth had to walk up to her for them to be face to face. Luneth could notice a vague shade of pink across her cheeks but he pretended he didn't notice.

"Well?" He urged her to speak.

The girl quickly moved passed him in an attempt to hide her nervousness. "He's a good friend, kind, and not annoying like a certain someone."

"Ouch!" Luneth spoke sarcastically like her comment had hurt him. "But I'm sure Arc would be happy hear that." He added with a softer voice hoping she might take it as a hint that Arc cared for her, a lot.

Refia didn't say anything, maybe she was deep in thought, but she did hand over one of the buckets to Luneth. Since he took the trouble to come along and embarrass her with that question he might as well do some good too.

They reached the stream and they both bent down with the bucket to collect water with it. The water looked clean and it felt cool as it brushed against their hands.

Luneth was now almost convinced that Arc wouldn't have to worry about his feelings not being returned if he were to confess. Refia's behaviour had clearly been a sign of some sort of affection. Luneth wasn't a master of love and such but when a girl avoided talking about something, or in this case, someone, it usually meant something.

With Luneth being Luneth, he felt the need to tease her a little about it before reaching the camp but he was interrupted before even having the chance to start. They could hear Arc and Ingus talking loudly, almost argue but still not.

Refia glanced at Luneth in confusion. "And here I thought it would be calm without you there."

"Ha-ha, very funny." Luneth retorted, once again, sarcastically. "But you're probably right, what could they be up to?"

For two rather calm boys, something serious must have happened for them to raise their voices towards each other. Refia and Luneth exchanged a look that clearly meant 'Let's hurry!' And with that they both dashed off in the direction of their camp.

What they saw when they arrived a short minute later, was Arc, sitting against a tree with his whole arm pointing frantically towards the lake, and Ingus, with his hands on his hips and a serious look on his face trying to convince Arc of something.

Refia, who was probably the most mature one of the whole gang, interrupted them with her loud and serious voice. "What is going on here?" She put down one of the buckets in front of the chocobos. Luneth did the same but without taking his surprised eyes of the two arguing boys.

Ingus, who was calmer than Arc, replied her, "Arc claims he saw, and I am not joking, a mermaid."

"I saw it, I saw it!" Arc cried in his defence.

Refia couldn't believe it. Was that all? "We have all seen a mermaid, we have even killed a few, remember?"

"Oh, but not one of those," Ingus continued. "He wants me to believe it was a beautiful one, from fairy tales, you know?"

"Oh, those aren't real." Refia stated clearly. "And how is that dinner coming along?" Their argument was ridiculous so she thought it was best to change the subject.

_A mermaid?!_ Luneth thought with a smirk. Like those serious people, meaning Refia and Ingus, Luneth had a hard time to let go of things that interested him. Luneth also trusted his brother, if an intelligent guy like Arc claimed he saw a beautiful mermaid, it was likely to be true. Therefore he went to sit down by Arc, as Refia instructed Ingus what to hunt for dinner.

"Did you really see one?" Luneth whispered.

"Yes!" Arc whispered back with desperation in his voice, but also with a hint of relief that someone seemed to believe him.

"Awesome!" Luneth gave him a pat on the shoulder. "Let's look for more!"

"What?" Arc had a rather terrified expression at the thought of searching for something that made others think he was crazy.

But Luneth did not take 'no' for an answer and Arc knew that. During their time growing up, Arc was always the one who got dragged into Luneth's mischievous plans, and today was no exception. Quietly, the brothers snuck away from the other two and headed towards the lake.

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><p><strong>R&amp;R! Unless you don't like it, we don't like flamers. We will so kindly send you away to a story you like :) <strong>


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